Well I heard you're writing fluffy oneshots on the side, Burr
by smoltinypumpkinchild
Summary: Hit a bit of a block with my main fic, so I decided to write it out with some cheesy oneshots. Nothing fancy, just using tumblr prompts and stealing other people's ideas. Will be HamBurr, Lams, Mullette, maybe Herc/Peggy or Herc/Eliza, who knows, and just general squad antics. Please comment with thoughts, suggestions and prompts- comments give me LIFE! Enjoy!
1. Hamburr- To the groom! (pt 1)

***Let's kick it off with some fluffy Hamburr, shall we? This one was inspired (coughcoughdirectlycopiedfrom) this tumblr prompt: post/144505629353/aaron-and-alex-au-where-they-are-actually-already**  
 **Happy reading!***

The weak sunlight filtered through the blinds, and Alexander sat with his head on the table, still half asleep, as he listened to the sizzling of the oil in the pan and his husband's soft humming. As he stifled a yawn behind his hand, a soft chuckle from the stove turned it into a smile- also hidden. He feigned offense instead, muttering _'shut up'_ under his breath and burying his face into the crook of his arm. The man only laughed again- that warm, easy sound he'd become so used to over the years, and that he used to have to work so hard for. _Not now,_ he thought.

"Perhaps, if you went to sleep at a reasonable time, you wouldn't be so tired." came the voice. Alex grunted, his reply muffled.

"This time was _your_ fault. You had to go and wear that damn grey tank top, you _know_ what your arms do to me. And you were up just as late- by rights, you should be as tired as I am." He raised his head, pouting, to see his husband turn with a fondly sceptical expression on his face.

"Well, _I_ wasn't up until 4am every night this week writing, so you've only yourself to blame, Allie." he said, shaking his head and cuffing Alex's nose lightly with a finger. Alex only scowled.

"Hey- it's an important essay and I had to get it done and-"

"- _and_ there are thirty other students in that class who got everything they needed to say down in about three pages. You're the one who had to go and write thirty." He turned back to the stove, picking up the pan and tipping the contents onto a plate. Alex huffed and blew the hair out of his eyes.

"Ugh, I hate it when you're right."

"Honestly, Alexander, I thought you'd have gotten used to it by now." There was a teasing twinkle in the man's dark eyes as he came back to the table and put the plate of pancakes down in front of Alex. Alex felt his expression soften- they really did smell delicious. He sighed and offered his husband a small smile.

"You know, Aaron, you really didn't have to-"

"I know I didn't _have_ to babe, I _wanted_ to." Aaron shook his head again, pushing the plate towards him. "Big debate today, get your strength up, yada yada."

"Well, thanks."

"You are most welcome. Now _I_ -" He kissed the side of Alex's head and went to grab his jacket from the hook by the door. "-have to go, or I'll be late for my lecture." He flashed Alexander a million-dollar-smile, one only Alex ever got to see, and pulled the jacket over his shoulders. "Eat up, kick Jefferson's ass, and I'll meet you for dinner, yeah?"

"Bye, babe. Hey- wait!" He stood as Aaron made to leave, and the man turned in surprise.

"What-" He made a surprised sort of squeak as Alex gripped the front of his shirt and pressed his lips to his. For a second, he was tensed in surprise, but he relaxed as Alex pulled him closer. Alex felt him grin against his lips. As they drew apart, Alex saw that Aaron had his eyes closed, and felt a swell of something warm in his chest.

"I love you." he murmured. Aaron opened his eyes and smiled, his eyes crinkling up.

"I love you too." He pecked his lips once more, then backed out of the apartment, still smiling.

"See you later, Alexander."

"Bye" He blew Aaron another kiss as he left, watching as he rolled his eyes and waved, then slowly shut the door and returned to his pancakes. A warm, fuzzy sort of feeling stayed in his stomach- not the jitters he used to get when Aaron kissed him or held his hand- but a calm softness that he had come to recognise as contentment.

What had he done to deserve someone like Aaron? People had warned them against marrying, had said they were rushing into things; they had only been eighteen and nineteen when Aaron had proposed, and they'd got married less than a year later- but they had been together for years before that. They had known each other since middle school, and started dating while both very young, and neither could imagine being with anyone else. Despite all the warnings, they'd gone through with the marriage, and never regretted it for a second. Now, three years later and both in college, they were going as strong as ever, and Alex knew he was one of the luckiest people on earth for it all to have gone so well. Sure, they bickered and teased like nobody's business, especially in public, but nothing ever got serious- not any more. They had learned early on that talking to each other when anything was wrong was always the best course of action- and though Alex wouldn't swallow his pride for many, he would do it for Aaron. He knew his husband was the same.

As he sat, finishing his pancakes, he ran his thumb over the tattoo on his ring finger- the little black mark that he'd got for Aaron- one you'd probably miss if you weren't looking. It was an ellipsis- three inky dots running horizontally along the inside. They'd opted for the tattoos rather than rings, partly because they couldn't really afford them, and partly because neither were big jewellery wearers- and Alex would probably have lost his by now anyway. Changing a surname, too, had seemed like an awful lot of hassle at the time, so they'd decided just to keep their own- neither _belonged_ to the other, after all, and the fight over whose they kept would have brought the house down- not in a good way. They had their tattoos, then, to remind them that they have made that promise. Alex had chosen an ellipsis for his because of the quiet comfort he found in Aaron- a welcome pause, he had said, in the midst of his hectic life. He'd told Aaron in his vows that he was the only person he could ever be quiet with. It was also a teasing reference to Aaron's "talk less, smile more" motto (he'd thought a smiley face might be a little too much). Aaron himself had speech-marks. It fitted them very well.

When he had finished, he quickly got dressed, pulling a t-shirt and hoodie over his head- which messed up his hair- and finished the last swigs of his coffee before he left. He wasn't worried about the debate- sure, he was determined to grind Jefferson into the mud, but he knew he'd have Aaron to complain to _or_ celebrate with, whichever way it went- not to mention his other friends. _Speaking of…_

He pulled out his phone and sent a quick text to his best friend, John Laurens, and another to _his_ roommate, Lafayette.

 ** _To:_** **Turtle-fucker**

eyyo u ready 4 debate 2day? Mac-fucker needs some ass-kicking pronto

 ** _To:_** **Baguette-fucker**

Yo remember booze 4 l8r? Will txt later to tell u if its sorrow-drowning or a partayy

He then tucked his phone into his pocket, slung his bag over his shoulder and headed out, ready for whatever Jefferson had to throw at him. It was show-time.

"You know what?" John said through a mouthful of cereal, sitting at the kitchen table with a surprisingly authoritative expression, considering he was wearing a turtle onesie. His roommate, Hercules, didn't look up from his sewing.

"What?"

"Aww, come on- don't be like that. It's an actual good idea, ok?" Herc raised his head, arching one eyebrow.

"Sure, John, whatever you say." John flipped him off.

"Just trust me, alright?" he pleaded. At that, the man let out a short laugh.

"Trust you? Like we trusted you with that-" John groaned loudly, rolling his eyes.

"For the _last time_ , how was I supposed to know it would blow up?"

"Oh, be quiet John. You are disturbing my beauty sleep." came another voice from the couch. Their other roommate, Lafayette, was sprawled out on it, mostly hidden in their own hair.

"Like you need it." John scoffed.

"Touché."

"So, what I was _going_ to say-" John tried again, glaring pointedly at Hercules, "-was that we should find Alex a date."

His two friends blinked at him in surprise.

"Why?"

"Because he's lonely and single, _duh_."

"He's been single the whole time we've known him, dude" Herc said, apparently still not convinced. "Why'd you suddenly notice?"

"I'd just been thinking." John shrugged. "You know, he _never_ picks anyone up when we go clubbing-"

"Neither do you, mon ami," Laf pointed out.

"Well, _duh,_ of course I don't. Ace, Laf- remember? But Alex is bisexual, right? So I figure it's cause he wants a committed relationship, not just a one-night-stand. Which is cool, I respect that, but he, like, _never_ leaves his apartment if it's not to go out with us, or hang out with his roommate, so he's never going to find someone on his own. I just thought it'd be nice to help him out." There was silence for a few seconds, his roommates seeming to think over what he'd said.

"You may have a point, mon ami." Lafayette said slowly.

"Yeah." Herc admitted. "It'd be cool to see Alex with someone. He's always stuffed up in his apartment, you know? Bet he's sick and tired of Burr by now."

" _Exactly._ " John said, a note of triumph in his voice. He'd known he'd win them over. "Friday, when we go out, let's try and get him talking with someone." Herc held up a hand, still holding his needle.

"Hey, hold up. Do you think Alex will be OK with it? You know he's a fucking peacock when it comes to pride."

"That's why we don't _tell_ him it's a set-up, idiot." John told him slowly, as if explaining something to a small child. Hercules mimed slitting his throat with the sewing needle. John ignored this. "We just introduce them, and see where things go. We'll tell _them_ that he's single, obviously, so they make the right impression."

From across the room, Lafayette shrugged.

"It sounds good to me, John." they said, before frowning and glancing at their watch. "But hadn't you better get going, mon ami? You have that debate with Thomas, do you not?"  
"Oh yeah, you're right! What time is it?"

"About 10:30?"

"Shit, I'm late." John scrambled out of his chair and into his room, and the other two could hear him frantically pulling on clothes before he barrelled back through, grabbing his bag and a cookie from the sideboard, before waving to them both as he backed out. They waved, exasperated, and watched him leave, still mulling over what he'd said about their friend.

On his way, as he checked his phone, he saw a text from Alex that he'd missed.

 ** _From:_** **AdotBitch**

eyyo u ready 4 debate 2day? Mac-fucker needs some ass-kicking pronto

Grinning to himself, he walked a little faster to catch his friend at debate. He was pretty proud of himself for his 3am epiphany- and he'd had a lot of time to think it over while Lafayette and Hercules slept. Alex would _finally_ have a date, and he'd be able to thank John for it, to boot. What could go wrong?

Alex made his way to the corner café with a beaming smile on his face. He and John had _thrashed_ Jefferson- the look on his face when they'd finished was one Alex would be able to remember for a long, long time. If he'd had a microphone, he definitely would have dropped it. The rest of his day had been spent in glorious triumph, winking at Thomas whenever he passed, and deciding exactly what to say to Aaron about it. He always gave him a blow-by-blow account, no matter the outcome, and he had already started basically scripting it out in his head. A few blocks down, a little ' _ping'_ from his pocket made him pull out his phone, and smile still wider at the message showing there. He quickly replied.

 ** _From:_** **Rent-payer**

Waiting at the café- I ordered for you. ETA?

 ** _To:_** **Rent-payer**

5 mins. Thx 4 ordering- unless it's mac n cheese. Ive butchered enough of that 4 1 day xx

Tucking away his phone, he continued, picking up his pace as he felt a few spots of freezing rain on the back of his head. Damn the New York weather.

When he got there, he saw Aaron look up from the book he was reading to see who was at the door. His face split into a smile as he saw Alex, and he tucked his book into his bag quickly.

"Alexander, hey. I take it debate went well?"

"Did it _ever_." Alex sighed, slumping down in the seat opposite him and dumping his bag at his feet. Aaron reached over and took his hand across the table, surprising Alex a little- Aaron wasn't one for PDA. At _all._ When they had first started dating, he had tried to pester him into it, being the cuddler that he was: trying to hold his hand or kiss him in public, but Aaron had always shied away. After he'd properly talked to him about it, and found out just how uncomfortable it made him, he'd felt awful. But hey, they were past that. And it meant Alex could claim right to double the affection when they were alone… still, the gentle cycle that Aaron was now rubbing into the back of his hand was certainly something he could get used to…

"Alexander?" Aaron said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. Just zoned out, you know." There was a short pause, which Aaron broke with a chuckle.

"Well, get on with it. I know you're dying to re-live the glory." Alex couldn't suppress his beaming smile at that. He shifted in his seat, letting go of Aaron's hand and planting both of his flat on the table.

"Right, so it was on the ethics of prostitution, right?" he said, watching Aaron settle in his chair, listening intently. "Obviously, John and I were _for_ the rights of sex-workers, and Jefferson was against, and since he won last time- according to _some_ people, anyway, he got to start- and, man, you won't _believe_ what he opened with- he actually had the fucking _nerve_ to suggest that-"

Aaron smiled fondly at his husband as he rambled on- practically quoting every point that had been made word for word- letting the chatter wash over him. He had used to find that _so annoying_ : Alexander could talk for hours if you didn't stop him, and they had argued about it no end when they were younger. It had infuriated him, the endless babbling and complaining, but that was just Alex. And he loved Alex, so he had come to love his chatter too. He grew most worried, now, when his husband _wasn't_ talking- that generally meant something was up.

They still argued about it, of course, but there was no malice behind the words now, no matter how strong a front either of them put up. Their most serious bickering ended in someone pouting and the other paying for drinks that night. Nothing more.

He let himself get lost in watching the man before him. He gestured so _wildly_ , his face completely animated, looking up now and then to check that he was still listening. _How could I not?_ he thought to himself _You don't really leave anyone in the vicinity with much of a choice._ Alex was so absorbed in his recount that he didn't even notice when their food arrived several minutes later. When he _did_ , he picked up a fork and shovelled in mouthfuls between his words, never breaking stride- years of practice had made him an expert at this kind of multitasking. Aaron doubted he even knew what he was eating. He worked slowly through his own casserole as he listened, nodding and murmuring assent when Alex paused for breath, which wasn't often, and gave a smile and a tip to the waiter when they returned to collect the plates.

"-and he just _walked out!_ " Alex finished triumphantly, slamming his cutlery down onto the empty plate with a loud clash. Aaron grimaced and muttered an apology to the waiter, who only rolled their eyes and took the plate from under Alexander's nose. "I fucking _decked_ him!"

"You sure did, babe." Aaron assured his husband, stifling the laugh that was building in his throat. After all these years, Alexander was still adorable. A grown man shouldn't be _allowed_ to be that precious, he thought, watching the beaming face across from him, and yet here he was…

"So-" Alex said, a little out of breath from his ranting, "-how was _your_ day." Aaron chuckled.

"Nowhere near as nice as yours." Alexander pouted at that, making the disgruntled puppy face that meant he wasn't pleased with the answer.

"Oh, come on." Aaron shook his head.

"I just took notes at lectures all day- nothing exciting. Oh, and speaking of things that aren't exciting…" He pulled a large booklet out of his bag, ignoring Alexander's groan, and put it on the table between them. "We need a new carpet for the sitting room- ours is falling to pieces. What colour do you want?"

" _Aaron…_ "

"Alex, we both know you'll throw a hissy fit if I choose it without you." Alex folded his arms and pouted again, but pulled the thing towards him. He flipped through the booklet, peering at the different colours.

"I can't even tell the difference between half of them!" he complained, frowning at the pages as if they had offended him.  
"Just give me a rough idea, I'll refine the shade of it."

Alexander furrowed his brow, looking from shade to shade in confusion.

"What the- 'Baby's breath'? That's not a colour- 'Light sand'- it's fucking beige! Just say beige!" He turned the pages faster, and Aaron put a hand on his arm.

"You don't even have to use the booklet, babe, just give me a rough idea. How about blue?" Alex shook his head.

"Blue is depressing. If I learned one thing from that literature class, it's that blue means sadness- and I do not want a sad carpet in our living room."

"Alright then, how about purple?"

"Oh, _hell no,_ that's like, Jefferson's signature colour! If you think I'm going to walk into our living room and immediately think of Jefferson, you've got another thing coming!"

Aaron sighed. This was going to take a while.

 ***Thanks for reading! Once again, please give suggestions and prompts in the comments so I can write more! Love you! 3***


	2. Hamburr- To the groom! (pt 2)

Lafayette met John at the gates after class, complaining about not being able to stand Hercules for a second longer, and they leaned against the wall outside and talked. Laf listened gleefully to his recount of the debate with Jefferson, sniggering appreciatively as he told them how they'd thrashed him. They wanted every last detail, having something of a personal vendetta with Jefferson, and John was happy to oblige. When he'd finished, they were in stitches, and had to take a minute to calm themselves while John watched in amusement. They spluttered and swallowed, trying to steady themselves, before finally managing to stop.

"S-So." they said, straightening. "We are meeting Alex for a celebration?" John beamed.

"Hell yes! You got the booze?"

"You doubt me, Monsieur Laurens? It is in my car, of course." They pulled out their phone, ready to dial up a number. "I should contact him, no?"

"Nah, no need. He's got his location on- he's just down the road. We can get Herc, then go pick him up." Lafayette nodded, replacing their phone.

"Alright, then let us be off. Hercules is at the fabric store." they shuddered and grimaced. "It may take a while to get him out…"

On their way, John brought up the issue of Alex again, and was met with an eye-roll from his friend.

"Hey, come on- work with me here. We've got to start brainstorming; do we know _anyone_ who's single, into guys, and at least _roughly_ our age?"

"Roughly being…"

"Washington is not an option." John said firmly. Laf sighed.

"I don't know, mon ami. We do not even know what his 'type' is." But John had been ready for that.

"Oh, I know how to find out." he said idly, winking.

"And what on earth is _that_ supposed to-"

"You'll see."

"I hate you."

When they had reached the fabric shop, spent twenty odd minutes trying to persuade Herc that he couldn't afford anything, they continued on their way to the café.

"Ok-" Herc was saying. "My cousin James is single, and he's gay. Maybe he and Alex would hit it off?"

"Maybe… but isn't that kind of creepy? You know, Alex is basically our family already, setting him up with a relative feels a bit weird…"

"We have barely known Alexander for a year, John" Laf reminded him. "We can't quite call him family yet."

"Oh, come on, the only person he spends time with more than _us_ is his roommate. And they, you know, _live together._ "

"Hey, speaking of, is he here with him now?" Herc gestured to the shop they were approaching.

"I think so." John replied. "They usually go out for a meal or a drink after class- especially after a debate: I think Alex likes to give him a relay of what went down." Herc whistled softly.

"Burr must be a good listener. I can barely sit through _your_ chatter, let alone Alexander's"

"He probably just tunes it out."

John chuckled as he pushed open the door, and Herc and Laf followed him in. Their eyes quickly found Alexander- and Burr, as did their ears. The pair were bickering loudly, Burr holding a thick booklet in front of him, pointing to something on the page. He seemed utterly exasperated, while Alexander was defiant and resentful, jabbing his finger at his roommates chest, and they were attracting a few stares.

"Alexander _please,_ just choose a colour! It's not difficult!"

"Who says I have to choose? What does it matter anyway?" Alex replied indignantly- and oh, his friends recognised that tone. There was no getting him out of the spiral now, he was too far gone- arms folded and a childish pout on his face. Poor Burr.

"You are _hopeless_ , Alexander-" Burr was saying. "All you've done is say no to all my suggestions!"  
"I have not!"

" _Alex!_ "

John exchanged a look with Lafayette. Someone had to rescue Burr, pronto- the poor man was fighting a losing battle. _No-one_ could reason with Alex when he got like that- you just had to let him blow himself out or leave. They started to make their way over. Burr was still trying to calm Alex down, shouting back and forth, and then-

"Fine." he said, slapping the book shut. He sat back in his chair, folding his arms and holding Alex's gaze with an expression that was somehow… cocky. Knowing. A smile came into his eyes that John had never seen before, his eyebrows raised, lip caught between his teeth.

"I guess I'll just head off then, and… pick by myself. It can be a _surprise._ "

There were a few seconds of silence. Then, to John's utter shock, Alexander leaned across the table and grabbed the booklet from him, muttering about _dirty tactics_.

It was then that Aaron looked up and, smiling as he saw John and the others, waved them over to the table.

"Come to pick Alex up?"

"Uh- yeah. But if you're busy-"

"No, this'll give him an incentive to hurry up."

He poked Alex's head with a forefinger, making him grumble and look through the booklet faster.

"Come on, Alexander- your friends are waiting."

"Ok, _fine, fine!_ " Alex burst out, pushing the booklet back towards him. "Get, like, pale green. Like, yellowy- not turquoise."

"Not turquoise." Burr repeated. He took the booklet and put it into his bag, before standing up from the table. "Well, I had better be off- I need to get to the store before it closes." Alexander stood too, then began fumbling in his pocket for his wallet.

"Wait, don't we need to pay?"

"I already did." said Burr, rolling his eyes.

"Oh." Alex smiled. "Always the gentleman." The group started to head for the door, but John was determined to act on the idea he'd had earlier.

"Burr, could you spare a minute?" Burr looked around at him in mild surprise.

"Yes, sure. Why?"

"I'll tell you in a second. Laf, you guys start walking without me- I'll catch up." He gave Lafayette and Herc a meaningful look, and they nodded, escorting Alex out. As Alex left, he called out to Burr.

"See you at home!"

"Bye, have a good time." Burr replied, raising a hand as Alex and the other two exited. When they had gone, John turned to Burr.

"Okay- first of all, how did you get him to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Stop arguing! He's too stubborn to give in to anyone." At that, Burr smiled ruefully.

"Well, I've had a lot of practice. The last time he couldn't decide on something, and I offered him a _surprise_ , it wasn't one he liked."

"I'm… not going to ask. Now- " He leaned against the table, deciding how to word his question. Burr watched him curiously, a small crease above his brow.

"Yes?"

"What would you say… Alexander likes in a person? You know- best traits and stuff." Burr seemed to think for a moment, then replied, slowly.

"Well… intelligence, certainly. They have to be able to keep up with him in a conversation- and in an argument. If they can't hold their own, he won't have as much respect. Wit, a… a healthy sense of humour, I suppose. Ambition, since he has so much of his own, and drive- motivation. Why do you- ?"

"What about physical appearance? What's he into, you know?" he pressed on, not acknowledging the man's unfinished question. For a few moments, he had considered telling Burr his plan, but then… he and Alex were thick as thieves, spent every spare moment together, and while he didn't _mistrust_ Burr… He didn't know him all that well, and couldn't be sure he wouldn't tell Alex. Burr frowned, and John couldn't help notice that he looked somewhat uncomfortable.

"Uh… I know he likes…height, at least in men? I don't know- pretty smiles? In my experience, physical appearance doesn't matter that much to him- what the person's actually _like_ is a lot more important. But-" he furrowed his brow further still, "Why are you asking _me,_ not him?"

"Well… I thought it might seem kind of weird to ask him. Kind of creepy; intrusive, you know? And I figured, since you're, like, his best friend, you'd probably know." The look on Burr's face was still more confused, and a little strained, but John brushed it off. He figured he'd got enough out of him, and, besides, he didn't want the others getting too far ahead of him.

"Thanks, Burr." he said, smiling at the man as he left. Burr watched him go, still frowning. John supposed it _was_ kind of creepy, talking to your friend's best friend to find out what he's into- but hey, needs must.

As he speed-walked to catch up to the group (he sure as _hell_ wasn't going to run) he felt the conversation had gone considerably well. He now had a bank of traits to check for in potential dates, though not many that he couldn't have guessed at himself, and he hadn't weirded Burr out _too_ much. And hey, at least Alexander still didn't know. He caught sight of Lafayette's hair bobbing a little way above the crowd- why did they even _need_ to wear heels when they were six foot already?- and followed that until he caught up. He nodded to Herc to show that his mission had been a success, before remembering that he hadn't told Herc what it was. Oh well, he could fill them in later. And _then,_ it would soon be time to put their plan into action.

That night, Aaron lay on the edge of the bed, nose in a book, while the rain fell outside. It was a warm night, despite the weather, so he was shirtless, loving the feel of the cool sheets on his back. He'd spent the whole evening dragging furniture from room to room, pulling up the carpet and setting the new one down, so his arms and back were sore. He'd showered, so at least he wasn't dripping in sweat any more, and the new carpet was down- so he counted it as a success, despite the mound of broken glass that was now piled outside. It was properly night now, and he'd received a text from John- almost unintelligible typos and all- that told him the group were on their way to drop Alex home, so he'd decided to wait up and make sure he didn't kill himself with a spatula while he was asleep.

He couldn't help mulling over what John had said- he'd been asking about what Alex's type was. That didn't make any sense, since Alex wasn't in any sense _single_ \- perhaps it was one of John's pranks? They had never really been on the same wave-length, humour-wise, so Aaron decided he probably wouldn't be surprised if there was some big joke that he was missing. But why had he called Aaron Alex's 'best friend'? What was up with that? Okay, he could kind of see the joke there- since _John_ was actually Alexander's best friend, but it still confused the hell out of him. In the end, he resolved to simply forget about it. After all, he had long ago accepted that he would never understand Alexander's friends.

He went back to his book, losing himself in the story- it was "If on a winter's night a traveller", and he'd read it before a hundred times, but all that meant was that he found comfort in it. The novel was worn, pages glued back in in places, the spine split. It was one of his favourites. Letting the words wash over him, he lay, content, with only the dim light from the kitchen to illuminate the words, nothing but the sound of his own breathing to disturb him. There was only one thing missing…

A knock at the door made him look up, and the badly stifled laughter outside told him exactly who his visitors were. As he made his way to the door, he noticed that the clock read barely past one- they were only a half hour later than they'd promised. A new record.

When he pulled open the door, took a cursory glance at the three giggling men and Laf propping Laurens up on their arm, Alex stumbled in quickly and made straight for the couch. He nodded understandingly to Lafayette, watching them try to steer Hercules in the other direction.  
"Be safe." he called. Lafayette smiled wearily.

"Thank you, Monsieur."

Aaron closed the door quietly, then made his way over to where Alexander was now slumped. He rested his hand on the man's shoulder, making Alex look up, and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead as he sat down.

"Hey babe, you have a good time?" Alexander nodded, grinning.

"It was _great._ " His voice was pretty slurred, his eyelids drooping- time for bed, then. Aaron took his hands and started to pull him to his feet, but Alexander tugged him back down and lay so that Burr was on top of him, running his hands up his arms. Aaron really shouldn't have been surprised. This was _Alexander_ , after all, and he was always a bit of a sleazy drunk.

" _Alex._ " he murmured as Alexander wrapped his arms around his neck. "This is _not_ the time, you're-" but he cut himself off with a moan as Alex leaned up and started nipping at his collarbone. Little shivers kept shooting down his spine with every kiss, every bite, and _oh,_ he was digging his fingernails into his back and- Aaron pushed himself away, eyeing Alexander reproachfully.

"No _._ " he said. He made sure his voice was firm, fighting to resist Alexander's wandering fingers and climbing off the couch.

"Oh, come on." Alex whined, reaching out his hands for him, but Aaron moved out of his reach.

" _No_ , it's past one in the morning and we both have early classes."

"But-"

"No."

Alex folded his arms as he sat up, sticking out his bottom lip in a pout.

"You're mean." he grumbled. "I come home to a sexy shirtless husband and I'm not even allowed to make out with him?"  
"I'm pretty sure you had a little more than making out on your mind, Alex." Burr chided. "You know how I feel about this sort of thing."

"We've had drunk sex _before_ …"

"Yeah, when we were _both_ drunk and my judgement was impeded. Both sober or both drunk- that's my rule, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, fine." He scowled, then sighed and stood up. "At least come cuddle with me?" Aaron chuckled.

"It's my bed too, Alexander, it's not like you could stop me."

They made their way to the bedroom, Alex pulling on pyjama pants but also foregoing a shirt. Aaron crawled into bed and Alex followed; he buried his face into Burr's chest and wrapped his arms around his waist. Aaron sighed, running his fingers through his hair, and placed a kiss on the top of his head.

"I love you." he whispered. There was no reply. Alex was already asleep.

It was Friday at last, and John Laurens was Ready. He had everything planned, the whole thing set up so that Alex and his potential date _couldn't_ fail to hit it off. She was a colleague of Lafayette's- a girl called Maria: absolutely beautiful, fiercely intelligent, single and looking for a long-term partner. Biphobia wouldn't be an issue, since she was bi herself, and he'd talked to her about some political stances and found that she agreed with Alexander on most things. It was pretty much perfect. He and Herc picked Alex up from his apartment and walked to the club, meeting Laf on the way, all of them feeling far more optimistic than they'd thought they would be about their first potential date for Alex. They had told her to get there a little early, and pretend she didn't know they were coming. The plan was just to introduce her as "oh, hey, it's Laf's friend from work!" and let things go from there- they could talk and see what happened, no pressure. It was the perfect plan. There was no way it wouldn't work.

It wasn't working. John was getting steadily more and more frustrated, watching as Alex and Maria talked. It wasn't that Alex didn't _like_ her, they were getting along great, it was just that he didn't seem to notice that she was flirting. Every simpering remark was laughed off and met with a joke or a change of subject- she left multiple openings for him to drop in a flirty or suggestive remark, but he managed to miss every single one of them. It was infuriating. Looking around, he saw that his expression was mirrored on both Herc and Lafayette's faces. Herc jerked his head at Alex, who was laughing at a joke Maria had made, and rolled his eyes. John sighed. Oh well, better luck next time.

When Alex left to use the bathroom, Maria gave them all an apologetic smile.

"Doesn't look like it's working, guys- I'm sorry."

"Non, _we_ are sorry, Mademoiselle." Laf shook their head, making their hair bounce. "We have wasted your time."  
"Yeah, real sorry about that." Herc added. Maria shrugged.

"No, it was cool talking to you- and Alex, he seems like a great guy! I think we could be good friends, I just don't think we'd really work like as a couple."

"Yeah… thanks for trying, though." She smiled.

"No problem. I- uh- I'm going to head off now, if that's alright with you? I have somewhere to be."

"Oh, yeah, yeah, of course, don't let us keep you." The three of them waved as she left, then looked around at each other and sighed.

"Well, it's only our first try." Hercules pointed out. "We can just find someone else, right? I mean, we shouldn't have expected him to fall for the first person we introduced him to, should we?"

"I guess not."

"Hey, guys, where's Maria?" Alex was back.

"Her ride got here."

"Oh, cool." Alex looked around at them, then smiled. "Ok, who wants drinks?" All three gave him their orders and he crossed the room to the bar, returning shortly after with three glasses and handing them out.

"You don't always have to be designated driver, Alex- why don't I do it for a change?" Herc said. He tried to pass his drink to him, but Alex shook his head, pushing it away.

"I just don't get drunk on Fridays, guys, remember? You can get as hammered as you like." John shrugged.

"Works for me." He raised his glass, and the other two followed. "To Alex's weird-ass drinking habits?"

"To Alex's weird-ass drinking habits."

 ***Aaand it's up! I didn't expect this to take so long- my first oneshot and it's already at least a three-shot... Oh well, hope you enjoyed!**  
 **If I misgendered Lafayette at any point, please let me know- and just comment in general, if you can! I love hearing what you guys have to say!**  
 **See you in the next update!***


	3. Hamburr- To the groom! (pt 3)

***Last part of "To the groom"**  
 **Smooching, lazy days, self-indulgent HamBurr cuteness and not much actual story sorry. But it was fun to write! :)**  
 **You all know what's going to happen. Have fun***

Aaron's arms were warm around Alexander's waist as he buried his nose further into his chest with something close to a purr. He felt his husband's chest vibrate with a chuckle, and smiled into the thin fabric of his tank top when he felt a warm kiss pressed to his forehead.

"G'morning." Aaron murmured sleepily, his voice low and gravelly with sleep. Alex would _never_ get used to that voice- the way it made his chest flutter and his heart warm.

"Morning." he mumbled back. He raised his head and pulled back a little to look his husband in the face. Aaron was smiling contentedly, eyes half-closed as he gazed down at the man curled against his body, that love-struck look that used to make Alex blush and avert his eyes now bringing a similar smile to his own face. Alex leaned up and kissed him softly, feeling the slow smile against his lips, he was so _warm_ \- and Aaron responded lazily, slipping his tongue into Alex's mouth with practiced ease. After a minute, he pulled back and kissed his forehead again. Alex sighed, shifting slightly as if to get up, but Aaron put a hand on his chest to stop him.

"You were out late last night, stay here." he said, moving the hand up to trail through his hair. Alex leaned into the touch contentedly.

"M'kay." Aaron smiled and kissed him again, more gently still, before sitting up and climbing out of bed, saying

"Breakfast?"

"Mmh." Alex curled in on himself, turning over, watching as Aaron pulled on his dressing gown and padded to the kitchen, and smiled into his pillow.

 _This_ was why Alexander didn't get drunk on Fridays. It was the only evidence that he even had the ability to think ahead- nights of rowdy laughter and music that would be forgotten come morning were not worth giving his Saturdays up. Saturdays were their quiet days. Aaron didn't have work, neither had class, and they put away any homework they had to do for another time. It was a system they'd established very early on, almost as soon as they had moved in together. It had been Aaron's idea, of course- Aaron always had the best ideas. After finding that Alexander had a tendency to work himself to death if left to his own devices, but also that he could not be persuaded into a regular sleeping pattern, he had proposed the idea of what was now their weekly routine. Alex could work as much as he liked on any other day: pull all-nighters, lock himself in his study, bury himself in papers- but on Saturdays, he had to put it all away. No obligations, no expectations, except that he would allow himself to relax. In turn, Aaron would not answer his work phone, preventing any three-hour phone-calls that he insisted were 'urgent business', and they would spend the day in each other's company.

Alex lay with his head on his arms, bundled in blankets, and listened to the sound of Aaron making breakfast. He sung while he did it, his smooth voice carrying through the apartment easily. Content to simply lie there, Alex closed his eyes and let the sound wash over him. No, nothing was worth giving this up.

After a little while, he heard the stove being turned off, and then footsteps coming towards the room, and looked up as Aaron entered.

"Hey babe, you want to come to the sitting room?"

"Mmh hmm"

"You going to walk?"

"Mmm"

Alex pouted and held out his arms, and Aaron rolled his eyes fondly. He picked him up easily, bridal style, and carried him through the hall to the sitting room, setting him down on the couch without much of a bump. He then went back to the kitchen, returning with a plate of pancakes, which he set on the coffee table.

"Pancakes, again?" Alex fake-whined, wrinkling his nose.

"Well, I can always take them away, if you don't want them." Aaron countered evenly. He reached to pick the plate back up, but Alex swatted his hand away.

"I suppose they'll do."

Aaron snorted and kissed the side of his head as he started cutting up a pancake, then slumped onto the sofa himself and leaned his head on his shoulder.

"You goof."

"You love me."

"I love you."

Aaron ran his fingers through Alex's hair again, murmuring the last words into his scalp. Alex couldn't keep the grin off his face.

"Who's the goof now?"

"Yeah, yeah." Aaron rolled his eyes and took the hand out of his hair, then scooted backwards so he could lie down with his head on Alex's knee. "You want to watch something dumb?"

"Yeah."

He pulled up Netflix and, after a considerable amount of debate- _It's fucking_ June _, Allie!-_ Alexander managed to coax him into watching Elf. Occasionally, Alex reached down and fed Aaron a piece of his pancake, never mind that he dripped syrup on his legs. He ran his fingers over his husband's scalp, rubbing small circles that made him sigh and settle even further into his lap.

"Just so you know, if you had hair, I would totally be playing with it right now." he said quietly. Aaron chuckled.

"That's good to know, thanks."

"Just keeping you informed."

They spent the day like that, flicking through rom-coms and appallingly bad action films- laughing until their stomachs were sore over the special effects.

"Would you still love me if I looked like that?" Alex asked at one point, pointing to a grotesque and rather unnerving CG alien on the screen.

"You _do_ look like that, Alexander." Aaron mumbled.

"Oh, fuck you."

"Maybe later."

"Smooth."

At around three, Laurens called, and Alex answered it to make sure John didn't panic and think he was dead again.

"Alex, are you free tonight?"

"No, sorry, I'm busy."

"Aw, man- doing what?"

"Nothing."

"If you're not doing anything, how can you-"

"I'm doing nothing, John, and it's very important. Bye!" Before John could answer, he'd hung up.

"Smooth." Aaron commented from where he was lying.

"I always am." Alex crawled across the couch and kissed him, tasting mint in his mouth. "When did you get more humbugs?"

"Yesterday, I went to the store." He pecked his lips- once, twice, smiling into it.

"You always taste like them." Aaron shrugged.

"I'm sure there are worse things."

"Wasn't a complaint. Bet I taste gross."

"You taste like coffee, Alex. Always."

"We're disgusting, aren't we?"

"Absolutely."

"Oh, god, we're totally _that_ couple, aren't we? Better be glad you're not big on PDA, or our friends would have killed us by now." Alex said, laughing. Aaron looked at him with a little confusion.

"Not big on PDA?"

"Well, yeah. You know- we talked about it and stuff; it always really bugged you when I was sappy in public."

"Yeah, when we were _first dating,_ Alex." Aaron said. He sat up a little straighter. "Because I was young, barely out, and worried about the security of our relationship. It's not like that's exactly an issue now… Are you telling me you've been refraining from touching me in public because of one conversation we had about…" he paused, counting on his fingers. "...seven years ago?" Alex blushed, a little sheepish.

"Well… yeah?" Aaron stared for a second, then laughed.

"Goof." He kissed him again, chuckling softly.

"Yeah, but I'm _your_ goof."

"God, we really _are_ that couple." Aaron shook his head, apparently at a loss in the face of their cheesiness. Alex snorted and curled into his chest. He was warm, as always. "You want to order pizza?"

"Please"

Over the next ten days or so, the gang introduced Alex to more than fifteen people, sometimes more than one at a time, in as many different situations and circumstances as they could think of. Nothing. Girls, guys, people who were both, or neither, people who reminded them of Alex, one who was essentially his polar opposite ("You know, opposites attract, right?" "That's magnets, John."). That had been a memorable evening. The most promising encounter had been with Hercules' cousin, James. The two had begun talking easily, and actually disappeared together at one point- but their hopes about the connotations of that were shattered when they found them animatedly discussing politics in a corner by the bar. They were close to giving up.

"You know, guys, I'm starting to think it's a lost cause." Herc was saying, his needles working as he knitted. "The guy's oblivious. We could shove him in a closet, naked, with the hottest person on the planet, and he still wouldn't get the gist."

"I think I may agree, John." Lafayette said wearily. "We have tried every tactic known to man, and for what? Nothing!"

"Alright, alright, but just one more?" John asked. Herc groaned, but John persisted- "Come on- one more- I already had someone in mind!"

"Of course you did…" Herc shook his head. "Who is it?"

"My co-worker, Angelica, has a younger sister." John told him quickly. "She's been single for ages, and wants to find a partner- I think it's worth a shot."

"Hmm." Lafayette seemed unconvinced. "What is she like, this sister?"

"I'm- uh- not sure, but I can ask Angie! Today- I'll tell her about it, and we'll see. Please?" Hercules and Lafayette glanced at each other, then back at John's puppy-eyes.

"Fine."

That day, at work, John caught up with Angelica in the lunch room to find her on the phone. She held up a finger to tell him to wait, and he sat, swinging his legs, until she had finished.

"Bye, Peggy! Love you!" she said, blowing a kiss down the phone.

"Your sister?"

"Yeah, she calls a lot." Angelica shrugged. "What was it you wanted?"

"Well, speaking of your sisters…" John began, rather proud of that segway, "You mentioned that Eliza was looking for a partner?"

"Yes? Where is this going?"

"I have a friend, Alex, and me and the gang have been trying to find a date for him." John said simply. "I thought it might be worth introducing them." Angelica seemed to be considering it.

"What's he like, this 'Alex'?"

"He's really great, _obviously_ , or I wouldn't be suggesting it." John told her. "Pretty flawless moral code, most of the time, and he's crazy smart. He talks a mile a minute, but you learn to love it. What about Eliza?"

"Oh, she's perfect." Angelica said, dismissively. "Sweetest, kindest person you'll meet, hands down."

"Well then," John beamed. "Are you two free tomorrow night?"

"Why both of us?"

"We'll need you to introduce her- and you can be as obvious as you like. We've tried subtle, and it didn't work." Angelica chuckled.

"Alright. Sounds like a plan."  
"Really?" John hadn't expected Angelica to agree this quickly- the girl was fiercely protective of her sisters.  
"Yes, really."

"You sure? Because I've got a whole speech about Alex prepared- with direct quotes and sited sources and everything."

"Oh, I think I can survive without it." she assured him. Then she glanced up at the clock, and gave him a smile. "We'll see you then, then- where do you want to meet?"

" _The Place to Be,_ on Liberty street. Best joint in town- and it's pretty quiet: no rowdy idiots."

"You mean besides you and your friends?"

"Oh, ha ha. You'll be there?"

"We'll be there." She waved and left, taking her bag with her.

Grinning, John pulled out his phone and set a quick text to Lafayette and Herc: ' _Operation Eliza is go!'_ One last try- and he had a good feeling about this one. They could only hope for the best.

The next evening, Alexander was doing his best to comb his hair in the bathroom mirror. It had twisted itself into a complete birds' next under his beanie, and he muttered curse after curse under his breath, threatening to shave his head like Aaron if it didn't co-operate. Aaron himself was finishing some work in the living room, an assignment for his class that he'd put off in favour of taking Alex to a museum the day before. Alex could hear the keys clacking, slowly- Aaron never rushed his work, and he only said what needed to be said. Unlike Alexander, who could ramble for pages before he even reached his first actual point.

Eventually, having persuaded his hair into some semblance of a ponytail, he went through to Aaron, saying "How do I look?"

"Beautiful." his husband replied, without looking up.

"Thanks."

Aaron was popping a humbug into his mouth- the hard sweets were his favourite- and Alex tapped him on the shoulder, holding out his hand for one. Shaking his head, Aaron showed him the empty bag and shrugged apologetically, dropping it into the bin.

"Sorry, last one."

"Why must you hate me?"

"Should have got here sooner."

Alex pouted, annoyed. Aaron pouted right back at him, mockingly, sucking on the candy, but held out his arms, inviting Alex to join him on the couch. Alex obliged with only a small eye-roll and fell comfortably into his arms; he fitted perfectly into the curve of Aaron's chest, and the man rested his chin on his shoulder.

"Sorry, babe." he said. "I'll buy more when I go to the store later."

"Yeah, it's fine."

They sat like that for a few minutes, until the doorbell rang.

"That'll be the gang?" Aaron asked him.

"Probably, I'll go see." Alex stood and walked to the door, pulling it open to reveal a stooped old man with a package clutched in his hands. "It's the mailman, babe." he called through to Aaron, to let him know he wasn't leaving. He signed the form that the man shoved at him, took the parcel and lay it down next to the stairs.

He went back to the sitting room and sat down next to Aaron, who was rolling the humbug between his teeth as he leafed through the textbook that had been lying on the coffee table next to him. Slowly, an idea formed in Alex's mind. He leaned across the couch and kissed Aaron softly, lacing their fingers together. Aaron responded easily, kissing him long and lazy, not trying to deepen it; just feeling the comfort of their lips against each other seemed to be enough for him. Alexander had other ideas. Soon, he was tilting his head back, changing the angle of their mouths so that Burr moaned when he flicked his tongue against his lips. He let his mouth fall open, humming contentedly as Aaron responded in turn, moving his hand from the couch to the small of Alex's back and tracing slow lines there, and he murmured Aaron's name when his teeth sunk into his lip. This spurred Aaron on, and he began to push gently on Alex's chest, but Alex shifted slightly and leaned into _him_ instead, punctuating the movement with a swipe of his tongue that had Aaron gasping, and he quickly got the message. He fell back against the cushions, Alex bracing his hands either side of his head and exploring his mouth with his tongue, pulling back to graze his teeth across his lips occasionally, then diving back in and practically sticking his tongue down Aaron's throat. Before long, the man under him was moaning, scrabbling for a hold on the front of Alex's shirt and kissing him back fiercely, and then-

Alex pulled away, triumphant. He slid off the couch, meeting Aaron's confused, dishevelled gaze with a mischievous one of his own, and grinned broadly to show the humbug held between his teeth.

" _Alex!_ " Aaron groaned, and launched himself at his now laughing husband, grabbing his sides and starting to tickle him as he pulled him back onto the couch. Alex yelped and struggled to escape, squirming and giggling under Aaron's fingers

"Aaron- st- stop- I'm sorry!- I'll- I- ah- _please- Aaron!_ " Aaron would not be moved, however, and only tickled him harder, wrapping his legs around him so he couldn't escape.

"You absolute _motherf-_ "

The doorbell rang.

Alex kicked out and managed to extricate himself, darting away from Aaron's grabbing arms and grabbing his bag as he headed for the door.

"Sorry, babe, but I've got to run!" he called, a sweet smile on his face. Aaron glared and jabbed a finger at him.

"You will _pay_ for this."

Alex only laughed and ran back to kiss him on the cheek.

"You'll come join us when you're done, right?" he asked. Aaron hesitated.

"I don't know…"

"Aww, please? You _never_ hang out with us."

"I wonder why."

"Oh, come on, they're not _that_ bad." Aaron raised his eyebrows, but melted in the face of Alex's pleading gaze.

"Oh, fine, fine. See you later."

"See you later." Alex beamed, pecked his lips once, then headed out.

"Now _you_ taste like mint." Aaron observed. Alex winked.

"It'll remind me of you." Aaron mimed retching over his laptop as he settled back on the sofa.

" _Goodbye,_ Alexander."

"Bye."

He blew a kiss, and went to the door. John was standing outside, impatiently drumming on the frame, and grinned when it opened.

"Took you long enough."

"Sorry."

"Nah, it's cool. You up for the best night of your life?" He slung his arm around Alex's shoulders as they made for Lafayette's car.

"What's the occasion?"

"You being the best friend ever, _duh_ "

"Well, I can't disagree with that."

The journey to _The Place to Be_ was predictable enough- Laf and Herc squabbled and teased each other, John disgusted them all with his innuendos- ( _For someone who's sex-repulsed, you know a lot of sexual jokes, Laurens_ ), but when they reached the bar, the atmosphere changed slightly. Alex wasn't sure why, but his friends seemed sort of… nervous. As they approached the bar, John waved to a woman standing there- who waved back, her curls bouncing.

"John, hi!"

"Angelica!" They hugged, and Alex gave her a hesitant smile. He'd heard a lot about this _'Angelica'_ from John, and he was a little worried about meeting her. Perhaps that was why John hadn't mentioned that she'd be there- she seemed to have been waiting for them.

"Hercules, Lafayette-" she said, shaking their hands, before turning to him. "-and you must be Alex."

"Yeah, hi! It's good to meet you." he said. Angelica's smile seemed a little _too_ warm, for some reason, and she was looking at him very closely, as if she was examining him. It made the back of his neck prickle.

"You too." She exchanged a look with John, and shook her head almost imperceptibly. _What was going on?_

"I'll order a couple of drinks." John said, and left to buy them.

"So, Alex." Angelica began, smiling at him again. "What do you study?"

There followed maybe fifteen minutes of what he could only describe as an interrogation. Angelica wanted to know practically everything about him- where he went to college, what classes he took, what he was planning to do in the future, why, his political views, his stance on racism, sexism, gender identity, whether or not he could cook- Alex felt that _she_ was doing most of the talking. Eventually, she seemed to make a decision.

"There's someone I'd like you to meet." she told him, taking his arm.

"Okay…"

Alex let himself be led through the crowd of customers, listening to Angelica as she talked even faster than before.

"My sister, Eliza, she's the most wonderful person- I'm sure you'll get along great! She was just saying, you know, the other day, how much she admired law students- she's an English major herself, wants to be a teacher- that's not a problem, is it?- and I suppose that it would be boring if you were absolutely the same, don't you think- no topic of conversation; she's just _so_ excited to meet you! She's been single for ages, and when I told her- "

 _Oh. Angelica was trying to set him up. Hadn't John warned her he was unavailable?_

"Uh- Angelica?" he said, pulling her to a halt. She stopped next to him and looked round at him expectantly, stopping her tirade for a second.

"Yeah?"

"I'm- I'm married, so..."

The look on her face was completely blank, as if she hadn't quite processed what he had said.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I'm _married_ , Angelica. Wed. Hitched. _Taken_."

It takes a few seconds. Then-

"Oh my god." Her expression changed from shock, to guilt, and then to… anger? Why would she…?

Oh, Angelica was furious alright, gritting her teeth before turning and marching right back to where his friends were standing, dragging Alexander by the arm. He felt himself begin to panic, what had gotten into her? Sure, she'd thought she had a date for her sister, but wasn't this a bit of an overreaction? He was about to ask her, but she spoke first. Or rather, she _acted_ first.

Angelica stalked up to John, looked him in the eye, and slapped him, hard, across the face. He stumbled backwards in shock as Laf gaped and Herc took a step forward, shouting-

"Hey, what the hell are y-"

"What the _fuck,_ Laurens!?" Angelica yelled, fury making her voice shrill. John stuttered for a reply, rubbing his jaw, but she cut him off. "What the _actual fuck_ do you think you're doing, trying to set up a date for a married guy!?"

"A married- _what_?" the trio looked from Angelica, to Alex, and back- total incomprehension on their faces.

"Alexander, I sincerely hope you had no part in this, and I would advise you to find a new group of friends." Angelica snarled, before she grabbed her bag from the stool and marched over to where a young woman was standing- presumably the sister she'd been taking him to meet. She took her by the arm and pulled her away, much as she had just done to Alex, muttering under her breath in her rage. The girl stared wide-eyed at the others as they passed and burst out of the doors, and the group stared after her, equally dumbfounded.

"Alex…" Herc muttered, shock numbing his voice, "Why did you-?"

"I think I would have to agree with Angelica." Alex snapped, silencing him as he turned back to face them. "What the _fuck,_ guys? Why the fuck were you trying to set me up with her sister?"

"Why did _you_ tell her you were married?" John retorted, voice rising. "I mean that's one hell of a way to get out of a date, but seriously, man what-"

"Um, maybe because I _am married!?_ " Alex yelled back "What the- are you telling me you've been trying to set me up this whole time? All those people you introduced me to, was that-?"

"Wait, you're _married?_ " Herc yelped.

" _Yes!_ "

There was a pause.

Alex's mind was spinning. _What the fuck? They hadn't known- they had thought he was single? This whole time? What had they done- just forgotten Aaron existed? Or had they thought that the man he spent the majority of his time with, talked about and to constantly, and shared a one-bedroom apartment with was just a close friend?_

He looked around at their dumb-struck expressions, practically able to _hear_ the gears whirring in their heads as they processed the information. It was John who broke the silence.

"Wait… so who's your-"

"Alexander!" A wonderfully familiar voice made John stop, and Alex turn towards the door. A peculiar cocktail of emotions surged through him as his eyes fell on Aaron, dressed in a smart dress-shirt, and smiling politely at the group as he made his way over. God, it just couldn't get any weirder, could it?

He hurried over to Aaron, stopping him before he was half way to the bar by putting a hand on his chest and looking up at him with something akin to panic. Aaron's hand went familiarly to his waist, but he returned his gaze with confusion.

"Alex? What is it? You look like you've seen a ghost…" Alex swallowed, trying to get his thoughts together. He felt slightly delirious.

"They- uh- they-" he whispered, so the others wouldn't hear, and bit back an unhinged sort of giggle at the absurdity of it, "The gang only just found out that I'm married. Or even… involved with anyone at all."

There was a beat, before Aaron's eyes widened incredulously, and he looked over to where the trio was standing. John, Herc and Lafayette were now staring at the pair curiously, realisation creeping slowly over their faces. He looked back to Alex, disbelieving.

"Really?"

Alex nodded. Aaron bit his lip, looking away from him, and Alex felt his stomach drop- was he offended? Did he think Alex had tried to _hide_ their relationship? What if he– But, looking more closely at his face, Alex realised quite suddenly that Aaron was trying not to _laugh_.

"They- they really-?" he spluttered, letting slip a snort that he hid behind his hand. "Oh, god, Alexander, that's- that's _priceless._ "

He began to laugh in earnest then, dropping his head onto Alex's shoulder, and if he hadn't been extremely put out, Alex would definitely have been _basking_ in that moment. He heard Aaron laugh like that so rarely- but he couldn't help the indignant tone in his voice as he replied.

"T- They've been trying to set me up with people- _Aaron, this isn't funny!_ " His own voice started to tremor then, meeting Aaron's eyes as his husband giggled helplessly, growing breathless. "Damnit, Aaron, this is _serious-_ this-" but then Aaron snorted louder still and he was gone. He buried his face into Aaron's neck, cracking up helplessly, the pair of them growing slightly hysterical as they clutched each other for support, sniggering and spluttering like little children. Their knees started to give out, and they stumbled to the bar, almost _howling._ Eventually, his stomach beginning to hurt, Alex pulled back, holding Aaron's shoulders and trying to choke out a sentence over his now wheezing laughter.

"Wait- A- Aaron, we have to- ssssh-ssh- calm down- we- we should-" He met Aaron's eyes and doubled over again. It was ridiculous. The whole thing was ridiculous. He had been married for over three years- since before he even _met_ any of his three best friends, and _none of them had even noticed._

After a little while, Aaron was the one get himself under control.

"Ok- we- we need to stop" he stammered, biting his lip hard and fighting the smile off his face.

"R-Right. Very serious." Alex took a deep breath, swallowed, and looked over along the bar. His friends were staring more attentively than ever, looking completely lost at the couple's laughing fit.

" _How_ did they not notice?" Aaron wondered quietly, gaze following Alex's to the group.

"Well, we don't have rings, so I guess…"

"We could still have been _dating_." he pointed out. "Come on, we live together, we spend all our time together- hell, _they're_ the ones that say we bicker like an old married couple-"

"I mean…" Alex started, but hesitated, not wanting to come off the wrong way. "We don't exactly, you know…" Aaron raised an eyebrow.

"You know… what?"

"Well, there's not a lot of PDA, with us, is there? Not that that's a problem!" He added hurriedly. "It's just we don't really act, you know, couple-y- in public, I mean. And I don't mind that, but you can see how they might think… how they might not-"

"Alexander, calm down. I'm not offended." Aaron shook his head fondly. "We've been through all of that before, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah- I know, but I just thought-."

"And I told you I'd be comfortable with being more affectionate, since we're, you know, _married_ and everything?"

"I- yeah. I just…" He looked down, conscious of how what he was about to say could be interpreted. "-but I got used to… not doing that. Not being like that with you in pubic. I don't mean I don't want to- I just stopped thinking about it after we talked. You know, the first time. When we were, like, twelve." Aaron snorted again at that.

"We were not twelve, Alexander, we were at least sixteen." Alex pushed his shoulder lightly, still keeping his voice down, acutely aware of the three sets of ears that were trained on them.

"You know what I mean. That's just how our relationship always was, you know? Cuddly in private, friendly in public." He looked at his feet, waiting for Aaron's response. Now was really not the time to be having this conversation, but he'd said it, and there was no taking it back.

"We could always… change that…" Aaron murmured, his voice low. Alex looked up at him, surprised, and was caught off-guard by how intently he was staring at him. He glanced at the group, then back to Alex, leaning in closer as he seemed to make a decision. His eyes were dark, his face far closer to Alex's than necessary, his breath- that familiar coffee-and-peppermint smell- ghosting across his lips. Already leaning on the bar, Aaron moved around to pin him there, arms either side of his waist, forehead barely brushing his. Alex felt his stomach flip at the proximity, his breath hitching as Aaron fixed him with a stare he recognised immediately, but that was generally reserved for a more _private_ situation.

"W-Will y- would you-?" Alex managed to stammer, his throat suddenly dry, knees unstable once more. Aaron quirked an eyebrow.

"Will I _what?_ What do you want, Alexander?" There was a smirk behind his words, and for a second Alex was back in high school, Aaron straddling him on the couch at his dorm, mouthing at his neck and chest until Alexander begged for it, making him keen and whimper, trailing light fingers up the insides of his thighs- barely even touching, just enough to set his skin on fire- and asking over and over- _What do you want, Alexander? I don't know what you want if you don't tell me- what is it that you want?-_ knowing full well that he couldn't answer.

Speechless, as he had been then, Alex took a shaking breath and closed the distance himself, pressing his lips to Aaron's. He kissed him softly, unsure of whether this was really what he meant- but Aaron deepened it quickly, leaning closer still so that their chests brushed against each other. He hummed against Alex's mouth, swiping his tongue along his bottom lip in a way that made his mouth fall open with a groan. He felt Aaron smile and reached up to grip the fabric of his shirt, kissing him back lazily, letting himself get lost in the familiarity of it. Never mind that his friends were watching, mouths agape, and that he'd never so much as held Aaron's hand in front of them. In fact, that spurred him on a little. They'd thought he was single? This, at least, should prove them wrong. He ran his own tongue along the back of Aaron's teeth, knowing exactly what that would do to him, and was not disappointed when he let out a low moan and gripped Alex's hair with one hand, the other still keeping him balanced against the bar. It was his turn to smile. He ran his hands down Aaron's chest slowly, letting them rest at his hips and circling his thumbs a little on his hipbones because he _knew_ it drove him crazy. Aaron gasped and pulled back a little, just enough that their lips weren't quite touching, and Alex barely held back a whine at the loss of contact.

"So we're playing like _that?_ " Aaron murmured, his voice gravelly, before kissing him again, painfully light, and Alex positively _whimpered_ when the man tugged at his hair, bucking his hips up in search of some kind of friction- something he was denied when Aaron pulled away with a sly smile and pecked him chastely on the cheek before turning away.

Alexander stood, completely frozen, and stared after his husband. He was thoroughly shaken, his hair falling into his eyes, his cheeks flushed, breathing laboured; he knew he looked a _mess._ Aaron, on the other hand, seemed almost completely unaffected as he strode quickly to the three gaping people at the end of the bar. Herc, Laf and John were standing exactly where he'd left them, stock-still, utterly shell-shocked. Their expressions were something out of a cartoon. Eyes popping, mouths hanging open, they mouthed wordlessly as Burr approached. Aaron held out his hand.

"It seems that we were never properly introduced." he said, and Alex could just _tell_ that his eyes were twinkling. "My name is Aaron Burr. I'm Alexander's husband."

It was a story they told far too many times in years to come, and one they never tired of. Everyone tried to embellish it differently, though Aaron could usually be trusted to give the most accurate version- and all agreed that Herc's was the most exciting. The Hamilton-Burrs made their surname double-barrelled, and made a point of making their relationship explicitly clear from the get-go, but not much else changed.

Saturdays were still quiet, and they lay curled around each other, listening to the hum of the traffic outside and each other's breathing.

Aaron murmured something Alex couldn't quite hear, and he craned his head around to look at his face- or his chin, at least.

"What was that?" Aaron rolled his eyes.

"I said: _I love you_."

"I love you too."

It was quiet, and it was more than enough.

 ***Whoop! I finished it!**  
 **Please tell me what you thought- and what I should write next!***


	4. Mullette- Firwork

***Fluffy Mullette Soulmate AU!**  
 **Inspired by my all-time favourite soulmate AU- where colour blooms at the first place your soulmate touches you.**  
 **For this, I'm using skin-on-skin contact in order to drag it out because plot.**

 **For nonbinarybabe on ao3, who requested some Mullette!**  
 **Enjoy!***

Hercules sat at his sewing machine, smoothly feeding the fabric through with his fingers, and listened to the ticking of the clock in the hall. His eyelids were heavy, his shoulders more so, but he knew he had to keep his concentration up. The young woman who'd commissioned this dress was paying him generously for an overnight completion, and, as well as that, he didn't want to let her down. She'd been the nicest client he'd had in months.

The silky blue fabric was beautifully smooth, soothingly so, between his fingers. Her face had lit up when he'd chosen it, and it wasn't hard to know why. It matched the curling fronds that spread across her shoulder.

He couldn't help but feel envious of her. She was clearly younger than him, but she'd already found her soulmate. And she had seemed so _happy,_ too- bubbly and warm, with a bright kindness in her eyes when she'd spoken to him- and though he knew the two factors weren't necessarily related, it didn't help the ever-more-frequent thoughts that kept creeping into his mind. Thoughts like _Maybe I don't have one. Maybe I do, and they live all the way across the world, and I'll never meet them. Maybe…_ He shook his head and tried to focus on his sewing. It was no use worrying when it wasn't something he could change. What was going to happen would happen, and he just had to make the best of it when it did.

To distract himself, he started to hum softly under his breath, but was surprised when a voice joined in with him, harmonizing instinctively. Herc smiled, despite himself. His roommate, Alexander, walked into view in only sweatpants, yawning through the tune, then breaking it off with a toothy smile.

"Mornin'."

"Al, what on earth are you doing up?" he asked exasperatedly, taking his foot off the pedal to stretch out his leg, which was starting to cramp.

"I could ask you the same." Alex countered, slumping onto the couch. Herc shrugged.

"I need to finish this by… yesterday evening, actually- but this morning is fine too. Just so long as Miss Schuyler can pick it up in one piece by 10 o'clock." Alex raised his eyebrows.

"Is she the cute one you were telling me about?"

" _Alex._ "

"What?" he drawled innocently, but his smirk gave him away. Herc scowled.

"First, I didn't say she was cute, I said she was nice, as in, not an asshole like the people I usually have to deal with-"

"* _Coughcough*Jefferson*coughcough_ *."

"Exactly. And _second,_ she already had a soulmark. So no chance." Alex didn't seem dissuaded.

"She could be poly." he pointed out. Herc shook his head.

"I shook her hand before she left, remember."

"Damnit. Never mind. Plenty of fish, you know?" Alex said, sounding hopeful.

"Oh, come on, Alex." Herc muttered. "Maybe I just don't have one."

"Don't be like that."

"It's a possibility."

"No it's not." Alex said firmly, scowling at him across the sewing machine. "You're too nice to not have a soulmate. Someday, Hercules, _someday_ I will be the beaming maid of honour at your wedding and you will be eating those words."

"Easy for you to say." Herc retorted.

For Alex's hands, clasped in his lap, were coloured deep red from the fingers upwards. Like ink-stains, Hercules had always thought- as if a fountain pen had burst over them. Little flecks of gold, like paint-drops, were speckled within it, and Herc couldn't deny how pretty it looked. Or that it made him a little jealous.

"Herc." Alex began, more softly. "It's going to be alright. You're going to meet the love of your life and be grossly adorable, which I will give you hell about, and then you'll propose with a whole big setup like the dork you are and you'll live happily ever after and have five kids and teach them how to dream and I'll come visit you in your practical-but-quirky apartment and laugh about the good old days when you were bitter and single."

The earnest look on his face made Hercules chuckle.

"Sure, Alex."

"And remember" His friend stood and put a hand on his shoulder. "Even if it takes a while, you've still got people who love you. A romantic partner isn't everything, you know. I'll be here for you."

Alex leaned down and placed a kiss on the side of his head, which Herc pretended to wipe away in disgust.

"Ew, man, save it for John." He jerked his head in the direction of Alex's bedroom. "Speaking of, you could at least _try_ to be quiet." Alex turned bright red in a second, much to Herc's satisfaction.

"I- We- How did you know he was here?" he stuttered.

"Really, dude? What did I just say? And even if I _had_ been completely deaf, have you seen yourself? Your chest is a minefield." Blushing harder still, Alex looked down at his bare chest, which was covered in love-bites, and then tried unsuccessfully to cover some of them by folding his arms.

"Oh. Right. Well, I'll let you get on with that dress, shall I?" he said, already halfway out of the door.

"Have fun with John…" Herc called after him.

"Fuck off!"

Hercules smirked to himself as he noticed the shallow scratches that ran along his friend's upper back. Now _there_ was something to bring up later. He lapsed into a sort of daze, finishing the dress without really noticing, and then slumped onto the couch behind him, thinking vaguely that Alex might be right. He'd meet them someday, he just had to be patient… and in the meantime, he had his friends. A little nagging voice in the back of his mind persisted, however.

 _What if I never find them?_

He was woken nearly three hours later by a pillow to the face from Alexander and the sound of John, Alex's soulmate and boyfriend, hollering One Direction from the kitchen. He made a mental note to move out as soon as possible.

John was a gangly kid a couple of years his junior with mane-like hair and far too many freckles- and spiky shards of black shooting down his upper arms. Like Alex's, John's soulmark was spotted with gold. Since meeting Alexander, he'd spent more and more time with the two of them, and Herc couldn't say he _disliked_ the guy, quite the contrary, but he was sometimes a bit _much_ in the mornings.

Stumbling after Alexander into the kitchen with a gargantuan yawn, the boy's freckled face appeared far too close in his field of vision as he grabbed Hercules' hands and swung him around- as well as he could, being half his size, belting "NOBODY CAN DRAG ME DOWN!". Herc shook him off and dropped down at the table, groaning.

" _How_ are you two up this early?"

"Some people go to bed before 4am, Hunkules." John chided him. Herc had to snort at that.

"Oh yes, because I'm sure you got plenty of _rest_ in that bed. You can stop sneaking in through the window, too, you know, I'll just give you a key." Alexander blushed again, but John just laughed.

"You got me. And a key would be great, thanks."

"I'll buy myself some ear defenders." Herc muttered. John winked.

"I would, you're going to need them."

" _Guys._ " Alex whined, embarrassed. " _Shut up_ , will you?" John smirked and raised his eyebrows.

"As I recall, that's not what you were saying last night. What was it? _I love the sounds you make, baby, want to hear you say my name, want to make you m-_ "

" _Aaand,_ I'm leaving." Herc stood, rumpling a now spluttering Alexander's hair and retreating to his bedroom. He caught John's sniggers and Alexander's reproachful whining through the wall, before both were abruptly cut off. He rolled his eyes as he pulled on a pair of pants. Those two would be the death of him.

In a few minutes, he was dressed and ready to go, with Miss Schuyler's dress folded carefully in his briefcase- Alex always teased him about that briefcase ( _"You look like a fucking lawyer, Herc!" "You ARE a fucking lawyer, Alex!"_ )- and rather worn shoes pulled onto his feet. He grabbed his keys from the hook, called "Use protection!" in the direction of the kitchen, and set out.

He was immediately blasted by a gust of cold air- a stark contrast to the cozy warmth of the house, and shivered, pulling his jacket closer around him. He blamed Alex wholeheartedly for that one, he insisted on having the heat on practically maximum, and ignored Herc's protests that if he _put on a goddamn shirt for once,_ he wouldn't be so cold all the time.

He walked quickly to the small post office a few blocks away to pass the briefcase off to the girl behind the desk. She was tall and slim, with hair dyed grey and a trail of deep indigo curling around her fingers. He didn't recognise her- she must be new- and hastened to read her name tag, which said 'Maria'.

"Hi, Maria, this is a package for a Miss Eliza Schuyler. She should be coming in around ten- she's pretty short, has long black hair, brown eyes-"

"Sir, I don't need a description- Eliza Schuyler's my soulmate!" Maria cut him off, smiling brightly.

"Oh! Right… small world, huh?" Herc coughed, a little stumped. Maria took the briefcase off the counter, looking him over.

"Mr Mulligan, isn't it? Liza said you were charming, and very talented, too."

"Oh, well I…"

"I don't know anything about fashion myself." Maria shrugged. Herc looked in surprise at her clothes- perfectly co-ordinated, subtle shades that complimented her lipstick, and a style clearly chosen to suit her body type.

"I find that hard to believe."

"Nah, Liza's sister picks out all my clothes. Now, do I give her the whole briefcase or just the dress?"

"Just the dress. I'll be back this evening to pick the case up."

"Got it."

"Thank you" Herc smiled, nodding to her as he made for the door. "Oh- and tell Eliza she's the best client I've had in weeks, so thanks to her."

"I don't need reminding to tell my soulmate how amazing she is-" Maria laughed "-but I'll certainly pass it on! Have a good day!"

"You too!"

Hercules ducked out of the shop, back out into the cold, and started off for the station. The journey was uneventful, if unpleasant, as it started to drizzle around halfway- that kind of light, almost non-existent cloud that somehow still leaves your face dripping. After wringing out his beanie on the platform, Herc boarded the train as usual and curled against the seat, ready to sleep through the journey as usual. His mind drifted to Maria and Eliza, how happy they must be.

Maria's finger, Eliza's shoulder- so she'd tapped her on the shoulder, he guessed, and wondered what she'd been attracting her attention for. Perhaps she'd dropped something, or Maria had needed directions… it could have been anything. He imagined the delighted surprise that must have split both their faces, and felt unease twist in the pit of his stomach again. It was all so unstable, so much relied on chance. He could pass his soulmate on the street every day and never know- hell, they could be sitting in this train carriage. And he might never find them.

 _What if I never find them?_

Later, in the flat that served as his studio, with large mirrors propped and occasionally selo-taped to the walls (Alex had helped), he felt his stomach growl and realised quite suddenly that he hadn't yet eaten that day. Putting down the purple suit he was sewing for Thomas Jefferson- his richest but least-favourite client- he stretched out and pulled on his coat, figuring that, since he didn't have any time-sensitive appointments that day, he could go out and grab something to eat. Putting off something for Jefferson wasn't exactly _horrible_ for him, either. There was a café down the street that he frequented, and that made a mean egg sandwich, so he headed there. The rain had stopped briefly, meaning he didn't get soaked as walked, but the wind was still bitingly cold. Damn the October weather. He reached the place and smiled as he recognised the man behind the counter. Aaron Burr, a tired-looking college student with pale purple filigree curling along the left side of his jaw, gave him a small nod of acknowledgement as he finished taking a group of teenagers' orders.

"Mr Mulligan." he greeted him with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Your usual?" Herc snorted.

"What is this, a bar?"

"You _do_ always order the same thing, Mulligan." Burr pointed out.

"Fair enough. Yes, my usual."

He ate in silence next to a steamed-up window, letting his thoughts drift from nothing to nothing. Thankful that he could relax for once, he didn't notice the time until a tap on his shoulder started him out of his half-doze. Looking up, he saw Burr's face, lips quirked a little in amusement as he picked up Herc's plate.

"Do you have anywhere to be, Mr Mulligan?" he asked.

"Not really, but…" Herc checked his watch- nearly 4pm. Oops. "I have to finish this suit by the evening." He stood, pulling on his beanie. "Thanks for waking me."

"Any time." Aaron replied, without looking at him.

Herc set off back up the road, feeling slightly guilty at having wasted so much time. The rain picked up again, so he picked up his pace, breaking into a jog and then a full-on sprint as it grew heavier and heavier, fumbling for the keys in his pocket. He stumbled to a stop past a tall figure standing by the wall of the flats, fitted the key quickly and made to dart inside, but the person put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Excusez-moi, Monsieur, but do you know if a Monsieur Mulligan is here today?" Hercules stopped in surprise.

"Yes, that's me! Who are you?"

"I- I came as we scheduled, Monsiuer, I'm Lafayette… you asked me to model for your new designs…"

 _Shit. That was today?_ Hercules had put out a call for a model willing to promote his new designs for androgynous clothing, and Lafayette had responded, and emailed him about a meeting time… they'd said three o'clock. It had completely slipped his mind. _Shit._

Lafayette looked worried, from what he could see of their face beneath their rain-hood, and was stepping away from him, removing the hand from his shoulder.

"Did I misunderstand? I am so sorry, I can-" But Hercules cut them off abruptly, shaking his head.

"No, no! Oh my god, _I_ am _so_ sorry, I completely forgot that was today! Are you- are you still available to model?" The worry turned to a smile as Lafayette nodded.

"Yes, of course!"

"Great, great, come in out of the rain."

He hurried to open the door, ushering Lafayette inside, and gesturing up the stairs when they stopped in the entrance, unsure of where to go. They were so tall, they had to duck under the low ceiling at the top, and he passed them, unlocked the door to his flat, holding it open. Lafayette stepped inside, pulling their hood down and revealing a barely held in fly-away bun, dark corkscrews twisting around their face- and _shit._ They were beautiful. _They were beautiful._

They smiled, looking around the space with wide eyes, and Herc suddenly felt rather self-conscious about how unprofessional it looked. The paint was peeling, the mirrors dusty and the floor giving way to wooden beams at one end- it had been cheap, so he made do. Lafayette looked so out of place there, like an exquisite marble carving in a warehouse filled with junk.

"I'm sorry it's so…" he waved his arms vaguely, blushing under their gaze. They laughed, his heart sped up considerably, as they spun 180, looking up at the ceiling.

"Do not be! I think it has… charm, non? Like a secret room in a story book!" Struck a little dumb by sheer _wonder,_ Hercules didn't answer, and Lafayette's face fell a little.

"I am sorry, that was… childish, was it not? I am always told I am…ingénu…" they trailed off, looking at the floor. Hercules's reply caught a little in his chest, Lafayette's embarrassed blush making him stutter.

"N-No, not at all! I was just surprised, that's all- people don't usually like it!" He walked quickly to the cupboard, pulling out the rough prototype he had for a long dress-shirt. Holding it out, he pointed over to the bathroom. "Could you try this on? You can change in there- I'll have to make a few alterations so it fits you properly, so come out when you're- uh…" Lafayette grinned and took the shirt from him, pulling off their shoes and heading into the bathroom.

"Of course, Monsiuer. I will be only a minute."

When they'd shut the door, Hercules covered his face with his hands, exhaling slowly. He had _not_ been prepared for this. Over email, all he'd learned about Lafayette was that they were French, tall, and used they/them pronouns. Nothing about the fact that they were _literally_ the most beautiful person on the planet, or anything. You'd think that was something you'd tell people…

He had to pull himself together. This was unprofessional at best, and he couldn't go fumbling over the pins in his nervousness, that could end in disaster. He took a breath, tried to get a hold of himself. _Come on, man, are you twelve?_ One attractive person laughing from across the room really shouldn't reduce him to putty, but Lafayette just had him _speechless._ After a minute or so, he heard the creak of the bathroom door opening, and steeled himself to turn around. He'd worked with attractive models before, and he'd been fine. This was normal. He turned, and froze.

Lafayette looked _incredible_. The sheer material revealed some of their stomach, and was so long that it reached their fingers and their knees, and though a little baggy in the chest, showed off their slim form very, very well. Hercules was star-struck. The fact that the model had taken off their jeans as well may have contributed, because _holy shit their legs were , really stunning._ Though a little shorter barefoot, they still towered over him, with long, toned arms and sharp collarbones, and, he noticed, they were blushing a little. No wonder, he was basically _ogling_ them. He dropped his eyes hastily, coughing and turning to pull out the pack of pins he had in his coat packet.

"It- uh- it suits you." he murmured, knowing his voice would carry in the small space.

"Merci, Monsieur." Lafayette smiled a little, still blushing. Taking a breath, Hercules looked them over, willing himself to look at the way the fabric fell over their shoulders from a _technical_ standpoint.

"Could you hold out your arms for me?" he said. His voice was pretty steady, thank _god_. Lafayette held their arms out horizontally, straightening their back. The fabric bunched a little around their shoulders- okay, take that in. "Alright, now up?" They looked at him in confusion.

"I am sorry, pardon?"

"Put your arms up. Like-" Hercules raised his own arms, bending them so his hands crossed behind his head.

"Oh, of course. Sorry, I did not-"

"Lafayette, it's fine." he cut them off.

"O-Okay." Lafayette raised their own arms in imitation, and _crap._ Stretched up, showing the way the muscles in their stomach flexed as they moved, hipbones protruding under the thin fabric, they looked _unfairly attractive._

 _Calm down, calm down, stop thinking about them like that, STOP thinking like that, just think about the shirt. The shirt, it's a little too long, you need to take it up. Right. Take up the shirt._

"Uh, you can put your arms down…" Lafayette lowered their arms, shifting slightly where they stood. "Okay, I need to take it up and in a little, alright?" he explained. "Just, stay as still as you can, and I'll try not to stick you." Their bubbling laugh made his whole face flush.

"I trust you, Monsieur."

He knelt down next to them, sliding the pins through his cuff as he often did, to have them available, and took the fabric between his fingers. _Calm thoughts. Calm…_

He lifted it slightly, folding carefully and pulling out a pin to slide into the material, but as Lafayette shifted slightly again, his knuckles brushed the bare skin of their thigh-

And a jolt went through him like a lightning bolt.

Shocked, he fell backward onto his heels, apologies on his lips, but found himself speechless as he saw the skin where he had touched. Deep gold and red, fiery orange, all blended together in twisting swirls, had exploded from the point like a firework. That was exactly what it looked like. A firework, burst across Lafayette's upper thigh. His heart hammered in his ears- there was only one thing it could be. Half afraid of what he would see, he lifted his eyes to their face. Pure shock was written there, their wide eyes meeting his and their mouth slightly open.

"M- Monsieur… Your hand…" they murmured. Hercules looked down at his shaking fingers. Silver-white and blue were slashed across the back of his hand- a lighting bolt, running from the knuckle of his middle finger to his wrist, branching out to fill the space, starkly shining against the dark tone of his skin. He stared. His soulmark. There was no doubt about it. That could only mean…

"Monsieur?" Lafayette's nervous voice made him look up, and he raked their face with his eyes for what they were thinking, what they thought of _him-_ of being his… his soulmate. They were his soulmate. Lafayette was his soulmate. He stood, slowly, swallowing and trying to collect his thoughts.

"Y- You're my…" he stammered, eyes still fixed on Lafayette's face.

"You are my…" Lafayette replied, face still quite blank.

"We're soulmates." Hercules managed. Lafayette nodded shakily. Then a smile started to spread across their face.

"You're my soulmate!" they repeated, grin growing wider by the second. Hercules felt a laugh building in his own throat as he grinned broadly too.

"You're _my_ soulmate!"

A few seconds of silence passed, both of them breathless with shock and delight, just gazing at each other in wonder. _This was his soulmate._ Hercules' ears were ringing. _And he was_ their _soulmate._

He was the luckiest person in the world. Before he could think to do anything else, Lafayette had thrown their arms around him, burying their face into his shoulder, laughing. Hercules froze in shock for a second, then wrapped his own arms around their waist, marvelling at how well they fitted together. Like puzzle pieces. After a few seconds, they broke apart, still beaming.

"There's- uh- there's a café down the road, if you want to…" he started. Lafayette looked down at the shirt they were still wearing.

"But what about…"

"It can wait." he said quickly. "You're much more important."

He took Lafayette to the café he'd been in earlier, greeted by Burr's raised eyebrows and the familiar smell of his coffee. He might be a little prickly, but Burr made the best coffee around.

"Surely not more egg salad, Mulligan?" he asked, teasingly, when they entered.

"Just a latte please, Burr." he replied. Lafayette entered just after him, looking around the space with interest.

"Bon après-midi" they said quickly to Aaron, before flushing and stammering "I- I mean, good afternoon, I am sorry, I simply-"

"Bon après-midi trop pour vous , ma chérie." Aaron smiled, cutting them off with a laugh. "And don't worry about it. Il peut y avoir confusion , non?"

"Tu parle français?" Lafayette answered in surprise, stepping closer to the bar.

"Oui bien sûr. J'ai passé une grande partie de mon enfance en Belgique. Did you move here recently?"

"Only a few months ago. But thank God that I did, or perhaps I would not have met mon amour." At this, they looked around at Hercules, who was slightly lost in the rapid switches between French and English. Aaron looked at him in surprise.

"This is your soulmate, Mulligan? I'm offended, why didn't you tell me you'd met them?"

"I hadn't! Not until ten minutes ago, that is. We came down here to… talk, you know. Get to know each other a little."

"Cute. So, what can I get for the lucky soulmate?" he turned back to Lafayette.

"A caramel milkshake, s'il vous plait." they answered.

"Coming right up."

Herc led Lafayette to a table, and they sat down opposite each other. Herc smiled, tapping his fingers.

"So, you lived in France?"

"Oui- yes."

"What's it like? I've never been, and Alex is from St Croix, so- a little different."

"Oh, it is _beautiful_. The _music, mon chéri_ , you would not believe, and such _art_ \- you do not see such here. Not that I do not love it here, but it is different. I have felt very lost in America, knowing hardly anyone- I came with mon ami Adrienne, but she speaks far better English than I do."

"I think you speak English beautifully." Herc assured them. They blushed, looking at the table.

"Thank you."

"Your drinks, mon amis." Burr said, setting the two cups down in front of them.

"Merci, Monsieur…"

"Burr. Aaron, but most people just use my surname."

"Well, merci, Monsieur Burr."

"De rien."

Herc sipped his coffee, gazing at the person in front of him. It seemed unreal, like a dream. As if something would slip, and it wouldn't be true, and he'd be back to being alone. Instinctively, he reached across the table and took Lafayette's hand. They looked up in surprise, but smiled.

"I'm sorry. Just… making sure you're real." he mumbled, blushing at how silly that sounded. Lafayette laughed their bubbling laugh.

"I assure you, I am quite real, Monsieur Mulligan."

"Herc, please."

"Herc. Is that short for something?"

"Hercules." Lafayette's eyes lit up.

"Like the Di-"

"Yes, like the Disney film. _Please_ call me Herc."

"Okay, okay." They giggled. A few seconds passed, then, Herc spoke again.

"Do you live with… Adrienne, was it?"

"Oui, and I do. What about you? Do you live alone?" Herc snorted.

"I wish. I _technically_ share a house with one other guy, Alex- he's my best friend, basically."

"But…?"

"But since he met his soulmate, _he's_ always round. And it's not that I don't love 'em, I do, I love 'em both to bits, but they're so _loud._ " He shook his head, remembering John's morning serenade vividly. Lafayette raised their eyebrows.

"When having sex, or generally?"

"Both. I've ordered some ear defenders off amazon so that I can start sleeping at night." They giggled again, covering their mouth with their hand. Hercules suddenly remembered something. "Hey- do you mind if I call him? Alex, I mean. I said I'd tell him when I found you- when I found my soulmate."

"Of course!"

Herc dialled Alex's number without looking and put it on speaker. Alex always yelled, and he'd rather it was where everyone could hear him that right next to his own eardrums. He picked up quickly.

"Herc! What's up?" he called.

"Nothing much. I- uh- I met my soulmate." There were a few seconds of silence.

"What?"

"My soulmate, Alex. I found my soulmate."

"I heard what you said." More silence, then- "What did I _fucking_ tell you!?" Alex screamed through the phone. "You with your _what if I never find them and die alone_ rubbish, look who was wrong! YOU!"

"Alex, I-" Hercules started, trying to quiet him slightly: people were staring. Alex cut him off, however.

"Nope, I've been waiting for this day for too long!" he yelled delightedly. "This is amazing! Where are you? Burr's café? Are they with you?"

"Yes, and they _are_ with me, but-"

"Bitch, put me on speaker!"

"Alex, you _are_ on speaker."

"Oh. Right." He quietened a little, cleared his throat. "Uh- Hello, Hercules' soulmate!" Lafayette giggled slightly and leaned closer to the phone.

"Bonjour, Hercules' best friend!"

"Vous êtes français?" Alex responded delightedly.

"Oui!"

"Okay, hold the fuck up, I'm coming down there."

"Alex, I don't know if that's really-"

"No, we're coming! John, put some clothes on, we're going out!" The last sentence was called out, presumably to John in another part of the house. Hercules groaned.

"God, I swear, if you two have been fucking on my couch again, I will-"

"We haven't, we haven't! Just… hanging out naked, you know."

"Right. Well, I'll see you soon, then."

"Bye! Oh my g _ah_ \- _John,_ stop that, we need to-" The phone was hung up. Rolling his eyes, Herc replaced it in his pocket.

"Those two, I swear, they're going to kill me one of these days." Lafayette laughed.

"I like them."

"You haven't met them yet." Herc pointed out. Lafayette shrugged.

"I'd better like them, since I'm spending the rest of my life with you." They turned pink, realizing what they'd said.

 _The rest of his life with Lafayette._ Herc looked into their shining eyes, waiting for his response, and felt warmth spread through his chest.

"Yeah…" he murmured.

It was everything he could have hoped for.

 ***Thank you for reading! I might do the stories for the other couples in this 'verse, what do you think? Please tell me in the comments!**  
 **Love you!***


	5. Never have I ever

Work Text:

 ***This has been knocking around in my head for a few days and I decided to write it at 3am last night. Have fun.***

"Okay…" Peggy muses, their eyes roaming around the circle, taking in the guests. Everyone watches with a strong sense of dread- who will they pick on? Peggy is merciless. Peggy has no qualms about spilling deep secrets. Peggy would leave you broken with shame, or screaming with laughter at someone else's. All they can do is hope for the latter. A few seconds pass, fear taught as a bowstring between them all, before the gleeful brown eyes light up. A smile slides across their face, positively _evil_ , and they take a breath. So does the rest of the room.

"Never have I ever…" they begin, peering for a reaction from under their eyelids, twiddling a curl around their finger- drawing the moment out as long as possible-

"-had sex with Alexander Hamilton."

The silence is deafening.

Seconds stretch out into years. Eyes flit around to the other guests- flit to _Alex,_ and then to the other blanched faces that surround them. Someone swallows.

John is the first to reach for his glass.

"Well, there's a surprise." drawls Charles, rolling his eyes. "Of _course_ you two f-"

"Shut up, Lee." John cuts him off. His eyes are narrow as he downs his shot, unabashed.

Herc and Lafayette are next.

Under the incredulous glances, their frowns are defiant.

"We were _drunk_." Herc states firmly.

"I was not." Laf admits.

Another pause, then-

"Oh, for god's sake." Eliza grabs three glasses and hands one each to the girls either side of her- her sister on her right, her girlfriend on her left. Both stutter and protest, but under Eliza's glare, they admit defeat. The three knock their glasses together and then knock them back in unison.

The anticipation in the seconds after is _tangible._ Most sense it's not over- the tension is still there- and though Seabury looks like he's about to ask why they're not continuing the game, he stops short as _Jefferson_ leans forward.

"What the _fuck?_ " he yells, almost drowned out by Angelica's shriek of "I KNEW IT!"

Jefferson doesn't meet anyone's eyes as he mutters a sort of wild stab at an explanation.

"Hate sex, guys."

There are a few more seconds of silence. Alexander has his head in his hands, his cheeks burning, along with many of the other players. But no-one else moves. The fear is dissipating. Peggy is beaming from the centre of the circle, looking on in triumph at the averted eyes and flaming cheeks they've left in their wake. A cough seems to break the tension. A few people sigh, scratch the backs of their necks, a couple of nervous giggles starting to bring them back to normality. Peggy is about to return to the circle and call Alexander to the stand, when a final voice makes everyone's mouths fall open.

"Oh, fuck you guys."

They stare with wide eyes as _Aaron Burr_ grabs his glass. He glares around the room, his cheeks flushed, and downs his drink, glowering straight at Peggy as he replaces his glass on the table.

Alexander leaves.

They play beer-pong instead.


	6. Burrens- Lost

***I couldn't sleep so I made trash**

 **Sorry for shitty characterization and pacing and overuse of adverbs and holy shit this is cheesy and bad I'm so sorry except I'm not because this ship needs more fluff ok***

Aaron was freezing. He was pretty sure that he was actually freezing. His limbs were seizing up, his jaw locking, and he seemed to have lost his feet somewhere along the path that they'd been treading for the past two hours. Walking hunched over on himself in a vain defense against the biting wind, he could feel the icy rain seeping slowly through the back of his coat and running across his skin, and the dead, paper-thin leaves that stuck to his shoes like plasters made squelching noises with every step.

Wasn't Autumn supposed to be pretty? Weren't the trees supposed to glow like fire above their heads and rustle in a soft breeze? Wasn't the moon supposed to turn golden, too, wasn't frost supposed to lace the branches with glittering swirls, weren't there supposed to be campfires, and laughter, and toffee apples and chestnuts, weren't they supposed to welcome their dragons' breath and tell ghost stories in the dark?

But no.

Here they were, at god knows what hour of the night, decidedly lost in the middle of a dark, damp forest with a storm picking up and no working torch, no idea where the rest of their party was, no map, no signal, and a rucksack full of wet sandwiches. (Alexander had dropped their bag in a stream five minutes after they lost sight of the road.)

Alexander really wasn't one for outdoor exploring. He was up for it, certainly, he was never one to back down from a challenge, but he just didn't seem to get on too well with… nature. His clumsiness, his short stature and his tendency to get distracted and lose sight of where he was stepping had resulted in a sopping, muddy, but defiantly chipper Hamilton barely twenty minutes in. He seemed determined to have fun, even when he was leaving sloppy footprints behind him and wringing out his hat. He was not the person Burr would've chosen to get stuck with in a dark wood with no signposts and far too many loose stones- not that he had much choice in the matter.

Luckily for him, therefore, the man dragging on his sleeve and saying "C'mon, Aaron- I recognise this bit, I'm sure this time- " was not Alexander.

If he could have chosen, Burr considered absently, he would definitely have gone with Mulligan. The man was sure, and calm, and infinitely good-natured in a way that was just comforting to anyone around him; you felt sure that he knew what he was doing, and that it was all going to turn out for the better, in the end. He wouldn't have been surprised if Hercules was already waiting by the car with hot coffee for all of them and an exasperated smile- having worked out the fasted route home, avoiding traffic, and pointing out a rare species of bat above their heads.

But it wasn't Mulligan, either.

Lafayette had actually surprised him today- and not in a good sense of the word. Burr had expected the usually sunny, up-beat man to have lead them all forward (if partly due to his long legs) into the trees and started a campfire song thirty seconds in, and to have carried Alexander most of the way. But he'd been complaining almost from the get-go- that it was too cold, too wet, that it wasn't worth it and they were going to get lost, that he was sure he'd heard a wild animal in the bushes, and yelping and hiding behind Burr- not an easy feat, given the foot he had on him- when an owl swooped over their heads. While Aaron did share most of his sentiments on the matter, he at least had the courtesy to keep quiet about it and let the others have fun. Having Lafayette with him would definitely have made his mood even worse- he didn't think he'd have managed long under the man's whining and dragging feet; even Hercules had started to get annoyed with him eventually.

So it was a good thing that it wasn't Lafayette either.

No, the man tugging at Aaron's coat and pointing in wonder at the fluttering mushrooms that lined the edges of the path, grinning around his mouthful of damp jelly sandwich and stepping deftly over tree roots, was John Laurens. And Aaron couldn't decide how he felt about that.

Sure, the man was irritatingly cheerful, chattering on about the different species of fungi that were native to these woods, a spring in his step as he swatted at the leaves in their way with a muddy stick, apparently completely unaffected by the increasingly driving rain. In fact, he kept wanting to stop and listen to it- "It's like music, Aaron!"; he would stand, head back, eyes closed, letting the freezing drops fall onto his face with a grin splashed across his whole body and listen, listen to the music that only he could hear among the raindrops.

And it should have infuriated him. If it had been anyone else, it would have done. But it was John, John with his wonky grin and his chocolate-drop freckles, and Aaron had accepted long ago that he was absolutely lost where the man was concerned. He'd been lost to him ever since he'd walked into Burr's bookshop and asked for '-something warm. Y'know, something that makes you feel comfy'. He'd smiled that lop-sided, sunlit smile and Aaron had been lost.

They were lost in a more pressing sense of the word right now, however, and he dragged himself from his thoughts to look around them more closely.

"I really don't think we've been here before, John." he said, squinting down the path.

"No, we have, see, I remember Lafayette tripped on those tree roots and thought a bear was trying to eat him." Laurens protested, pointing to the patch of uneven ground just to their right.

"I thought that was on the left side of the path…"

"It was, doofus, we were just going the other way." John pulled harder on his arm, urging him up the slope, still grinning. Aaron couldn't help the smile that twitched at his own lips.

"I don't think I've heard anyone use the word 'doofus' since ninth grade." he said, speeding up. At least it might help bring some feeling back into his legs. Laurens shrugged. It was definitely hailing now.

"That's me, keeping it vintage."

"Vintage?"

"Yeah, old-timey, y'know, just like mama used to make."

"Fresh, home-baked organic insults with John Laurens." Aaron muttered, and John's laugh was a hearth-side.

Lost. Irrevocably lost.

They were nearing the top of the slope, now, and Aaron was absolutely sure that they hadn't passed through here. He could see, just around the corner, a ridge of trees bent over into a sort of arch, with a decomposing wooden bench shoved underneath them- he was sure he'd have remembered that. Squinting through the rain, he tried to see if there were any other paths, but road appeared to only go one way. John was still striding on ahead of him, and, at some point, his hand had moved from Burr's sleeve to his fingers, which were laced tightly with his own. The man's hands were freezing.

He was about to tell John that they should turn back, when, suddenly, the hail grew three times as heavy. The icy specks bounced off the ground with a great thunderous rattling, and stung Aaron's face as they hit him, little white pinpricks all over his skin. Shocked by the sudden onslaught, the pair yelled out and rushed to stand under the low-hanging trees in hopes of cover, throwing their spare arms over their heads to protect themselves.

Tripping clumsily and forcing themselves against the trunks, no matter how muddy they were, they managed to get mostly out of the way. The twisted beech was a surprisingly good shelter- if not a very large one. John was pressed almost completely against him, his sopping hair dripping wet down Burr's collar and one hand resting absently on his chest, both of their backs digging uncomfortably into the tree-branches. Both breathing hard, they stood and stared at the wall of hail just beyond them.

"Damn." John muttered. "I really thought we were getting somewhere."

"Hey, come on- it'll stop soon." Aaron told him, trying to ignore the rather distracting proximity, how close John's face was to his own. Laurens frowned.

"No, I meant- I thought I knew where we were." he toed at the ground gloomily, getting his battered shoe even more caked in mud. "But you were right, we haven't passed through here before. We're totally lost." Burr shrugged.

"Could be worse. At least we know we're not going in circles." John looked around at him.

"How are you always so optimistic?" he asked. Aaron almost snorted at the question. Him? Optimistic?

"What do you mean?"

"You're always… you're just so- so calm about shit like this." John muttered, gesturing vaguely. "You never get annoyed, or frustrated- you just keep going. How do you do that?" At that, Burr really did laugh aloud. John frowned, visibly affronted, and he struggled to explain.

"It's- it's just- me, not get annoyed? You think I'm not- christ, John, literally everything annoys me. I get so frustrated, so… irritated by how cheery you guys always are- I just don't show it, that's all. The only reason I wasn't whining like Lafayette earlier was that I know how to keep my damn mouth shut."

A few seconds passed as John stared at him, blankly, before he, too, burst into laughter. The movement of his shoulders pressed Aaron's sopping clothes against his skin and he shivered visibly, making John stop short.

"Sorry- I just… man, you're weird, Aaron."

"Is that a good thing?" John smiled, wonky, like it had been slapped on in a hurry.

"The best."

He was still so close. They were almost treading on each other's feet in the tight space, and, as John moved to try and re-position himself, he slipped on the churned-up ground and grabbed Aaron's coat for support. Instinctively, Burr gripped his waist, holding him upright, and felt his whole body prickle when Laurens laughed breathlessly against him.

"Th- Thanks."

"No problem."

Neither of them let go.

They stood like that, clinging to each other and listening to the hail batter the trees around them, for long enough for Aaron's legs to go numb again. He could feel John's heartbeat thumping steadily against his own chest, slow and even, and his warm hands on the lapels of his coat. Laurens was staring vaguely at the tassels on his scarf, twisting them between his fingers absent-mindedly and gradually relaxing against him until his warm weight ran flush against his chest, his chin on Burr's shoulder. Aaron lost himself in the feeling, letting their breathing fall in time as they stood and listened. An owl called from the tree-tops, and they heard an answer, far off in the distance.

"Y'know, owls don't actually say 'twit-twoo'." John said quietly.

"Hmm?"

"Yeah- it's Tawny owls people hear, but the female says 'ke-wick', sort of, and then the male answers 'hoo-hoo', and people just assumed it was the same owl."

"Didn't know that."

"What can I say, I'm a regular fount of knowledge." Aaron's chuckle sent vibrations through them both.

It was some time before he realised that the rain was letting up. The rattling sounds had ceased, and the downpour slowed to a drizzle. But they were still standing there. John had his head on his shoulder, his eyes closed- almost as if he was asleep, and Burr reluctantly nudged him back into consciousness. If they didn't keep going, they'd be wandering through these woods till dawn.

"I… I think it's stopping." he murmured. Laurens blinked and flushed slightly, looking up at him, but didn't move away.

"Oh. Right." A few more seconds passed, before John let go of his coat and took a step back. The loss of contact let a cold shiver run through him, and he had to fight the urge to put his arms around his shoulders and pull them close again. Running a hand through his still-dripping hair, John was glancing around the space, up the trees- and then he stopped, staring upwards.

"Aaron, look." he breathed. He pulled slowly away from him, taking a few slow steps into the clearing on the other side of the bench, dragging his feet in the mud, before stopping, swaying, almost in the exact centre. His head tipped back, his eyes wide, he stared. Burr followed him, curious.

"What are you…?"

"Aaron, look at the stars."

Aaron looked.

Between the leafy silhouettes, marred only by a couple of lingering jet-streams, the bright, swirling lights filled the whole of his vision in an otherworldly glow. They were blinding, dizzying, spiraling outwards and seeming to shift and spin as his eyes struggled to focus- spilled like glittering paint drops across the hollow black canvas of the sky. Everything… dwindled. He felt outside himself somehow, sucked in and blown back simultaneously by the sheer magnitude of the sky, of the constellations and galaxies spread before him- and at the same time, it felt entirely distant. It was like a painting. A beautiful picture laid out before them and framed in spidery beech leaves, like an imagined burst of pixie dust scattered across the heavens.

For some time, he simply stared. He let himself get lost in it- in the endless expanse of light and darkness, his searching eyes carving shapes and pictures into it, and listened to the quiet rustlings of the leaves. Then, a half-sigh next to him brought him back down to earth, and he blinked and turned his head- only to have the breath stolen from his lungs again instantly.

John was gazing up at the stars in something he could only describe as wonder, his arms hanging loosely by his sides and his mouth slightly open, and the whole of the sky was reflected in his eyes. The cool starlight made a sort of halo through the baby hairs around his face, illuminating his awe-struck features softly and making him appear almost ethereal against the backdrop of inky branches. The freckles spattered over his face mirrored the dazzling constellations almost perfectly, little flecks of starlight dripped over his skin and oh god how could he be so beautiful?

"What?"

John had turned to stare at him, blinking starlight from his eyes.

Oh, god. He'd said that out loud, hadn't he?

"What did you say?"

"I- I…" Burr stuttered. What could he say? Before he could come up with an excuse, he was blurting out the truth. "Beautiful." he said, simply. "You're beautiful." Evidently, this was not the answer that John was expecting, because his eyes turned saucer-round and his mouth dropped open- and Aaron cursed himself and his stupid mouth and…

And then, before he knew he was going to do it, before he had even considered doing it, he had leaned over to John and kissed him. It wasn't long, or deep, and there were no fireworks- no sparks of electricity between their lips like people talked about- no, but it was... warm. Soft, and safe, and warm, and he pulled back after a moment, searching John's eyes for his reaction.

Pure shock was all he could see there for a moment. Then, slowly, like spreading honey, a smile formed at the corners of his mouth, growing to light up the whole of his face- and his eyes were full of starlight again, and then he had gripped the front of his coat and pressed their lips together- warm and slow and it felt like coming home. Before he could mentally kick himself for that cheesy thought, John was pulling back, grinning and shaking his head, cheeks flushed gold with his blush.

"You don't know how long I've wanted to do that." he murmured. Aaron raised an eyebrow, letting his hands rest on John's hips and their chests brush lightly.

"Would 'since the day we met' compete?" he asked. John laughed again and kissed him, smiling and smiling so much that the kissing part was getting difficult, but he couldn't exactly complain when a giggling, starlit John Laurens was wrapping his arms around his waist and peppering his lips with soft, sweet kisses, rising up on his tiptoes to kiss his nose, too- and he laughed himself, deep and warm in his chest, and felt the smile against his lips broaden still further.

Somehow, he didn't feel so cold any more.

 ***screams* I'M TRAAAAAAASH**

 **come shame me on tumblr smoltinypumpkinchild**


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